* Gorbachev Compared To Lincoln

January 27, 1991|The Morning Call

To the Editor:

I am distressed by the comments of Rep. Don Ritter calling for the stripping of the Nobel Prize from Soviet President Mikhail Gorbachev.

If we go back in time, we will see a similar event taking place more than a century ago. This event took place in a society which was trying to improve itself by removing a repressive system. The system in this example, however, was slavery, not communism. The society was the United States, not the Soviet Union, and the leader was Abraham Lincoln, not Mikhail Gorbachev. Lincoln dealt with the secession of the Confederacy while Gorbachev is dealing with the possible secession of Lithuania. The reasons for both these secessions are similar: the people became dissatisfied with the government in power and believed they could make a better go of it alone. Over a century ago, Lincoln used force to restore his country. Now, Gorbachev appears poised to do the same.

Ritter should not sit in his comfortable little office and make hasty judgments on the rest of the planet. He should be directing his efforts toward the problems which exist in his own country and district before attacking leaders who are doing their best to deal with their country's problems and concerns.

If there was such a thing as a Nobel Prize in the 19th century, I am sure all Americans would want it to have been awarded to Abraham Lincoln. I wonder if Don Ritter would agree?